Machine for marking insulating sleeving and partially cutting same



March 29, 1966 A. KINGSLEY 3,242,852

MACHINE FOR MARKING INSULATING SLEEVING AND PARTIALLY CUTTING SAME Filed Aug. 23, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. (EM? 4 [/N'fi'df/ March 29, 1966 A. KlNGSLEY 3,242,852

MACHINE FOR MARKING INSULATING SLEEVING AND PARTIALLY CUTTING SAME r 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 23, 1963 5? INVENTOR.

BY f6 6 4 52 56 Z6 5! U t d flatsalh 3,242,852 MACHINE FOR MARKING INSULATING SLEEV- ING AND PARTIALLY CUTTING SAME Lewis A. Kingsley, 850 Cahuenga Blvd., Hollywood 38, Calif. Filed Aug. 23, 1963, Ser. No. 304,022 1 Claim. (Cl. 101-30) In the electrical wiring of aircraft and other installations it is desirable to use insulating sleeves on various wires which in addition to color variations have code numbers or identifications stamped thereon to permit prompt identification of each wire. There are, of course, many additional uses for such sleeves.

It is an object of this invention to provide a device wherein a continuous tubular sleeve of insulating material may be marked at specific intervals so that the continuous sleeve may be cut into individually marked sleeves.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a machine which will simultaneously with the marking of the continuous sleeve partially cut the-rethrough on either side of the marking whereby the individual sleeves may be removed by pulling or further cutting as utilized.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a device wherein the alignment between the marking and cutting mechanisms is constantly maintained.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a device whereby a T-shaped cutter blade having a wider cutting edge than its shank may be utilized for processing a wider range of size of slidable sleeving.

Other objects and advantages will be readily apparent from the following description.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a partial front elevation of a roll lea-f hot stamping machine embodying this invention.

FIGURE 2 is a view taken along line 2-2 of FIG- URE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a perspective of the anvil.

FIGURE 4 is a diagrammatic View of the cutting action on the tubing.

FIGURE 5 is a perspective of the type holding head.

FIGURE 6 is a view taken along line 66 of FIG- URE 1.

FIGURE 7 is a diagrammatic sectional view of the anvil and type head utilizing one form of cutting element.

FIGURE 8 is a view similar to FIGURE 7 utilizing a second form of cutting element.

FIGURE 9 is a view similar to FIGURE 7 utilizing a slotted cutting element.

FIGURE 10 is a diagrammatic sectional view illustrating the cutting action of the slotted cutting element.

FIGURE 11 is a section of a modified form of anvil.

FIGURE 12 is a section of the continuous tubing illustrating the cut therein.

FIGURE 13 is a view similar to FIGURE 12 of the cut formed by the slotted cutting element.

The hot stamping machine to which this invention is adapted may for example be a hand operated machine as described in my United States Patent 2,725,817 or automatic form of machine illustrated in my United States Patent 2,996,000 to which reference is made for a description of the details of the machines. Since this invention is directed to the marking and cutting portion the following description will be mainly confined thereto.

A type holder 10 adapted for insertion in such a stamp ing machine is illustrated in FIGURE 5. The holder has a pair of fixed end blocks 12 and 14 and a movable block 3,242,852 Patented Mar. 29, 1966 16 controlled by rotation of screw 18. Wall 20 of the type holder has a ridge 22 etxending longitudinally thereof. Type 24 is inserted into the holder to provide the numerical or other indicia to be stamped upon the continuous insulating tubular sleeve 26. At predetermined intervals cutting elements 28 are inserted between adjacent type in the type holder which elements are grooved as are type 24 to fit upon ridge 22 to insure proper alignment.

Positioned beneath the type holder 10 in the stamping machine is an anvil 30 (see FIGURE 3) which has a base 32 and a raised rib 34 upon which is mounted a resilient pad or strip 36. At each corner of anvil 32 a groove 38 is provided which receives an aligning member 40 which projects above and inwardly over the anvil. Each aligning member is provided with a guiding face 42. The continuous sleeve 26 passes between opposed guiding faces (see FIGURE 2) at each end of the anvil 30. Each aligning member has the upper surface grooved as at 44 to receive a hold-down rod 46 suitably retained in the machine at approximately right angles to the line of travel of continuous sleeve 36 through the stamping machine.

In operation the continuous sleeve is drawn by suitable means (not shown) through the stamping machine until .an unmarked, uncut section thereof is positioned in anvil 30 above pad 36 aligned with type holder 30 which is then actuated to lower towards the anvil. As the cutting elements function to cut partially through the continuous sleeve 26 the type marks the desired identification indicia thereon. After type holder 30 has per-formed its marking and cutting function it is raised and the continuous now partially cut sleeve 26 advanced .to a position for successive stamping and cutting.

It has been determined that approximately ninety percent cuts through sleeve 26 is desirable to facilitate removal of individual marked sleeves at the installation site by merely pulling same loose. This degree of cutting may be accomplished by controlling the final distance between cutting elements 28 and the anvil when fully lowered as more fully described in my prior patents. When this control is utilized the cutting elements may have an enlarged cutting surface 48 as illustrated in FIG- URE 7 or rectangular form as seen in FIGURE '8.

A further control of the cutting action is illustrated in FIGURES 9, 10 and 13 wherein a slotted cutting element 28a is used having a Slot 50. When this form is used the type holder 10 may be lowered to cut through sleeve 26 leaving connecting tabs as at 52.

In FIGURES 11 and 12 a further control of the degree of cutting is provided wherein recess 54 is provided in anvil 30a to prevent fully cutting sleeve 26 and leaving a connecting strip 54.

FIGURES 7 and 9 illustrate the use of a T-shaped cutter blade having a wider cutting edge 48 than its shank 28 for processing a wider range in size of flexible sleeving for use in combination with smaller sizes of type. These blades may be either slotted or non-slotted producing the two small, uncut connecting lengths as illustrated in FIGURE 13, or the partially uncut single connecting link as illustrated by FIGURE 12.

While what hereinbefore has been described is the preferred embodiment of this invention, it is readily apparent that alternations and modifications may be resorted to without departing from the scope of this invention and such alterations and modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

In a machine for marking and semi-cutting insulated sleeving; a reciprocable holder, type elements carried by said holder, cutting elements between certain of the type elements in said holder at predetermined distances apart and projecting beyond the faces of said type elements, means for constantly maintaining alignment between the type and cutting elements, said cutting elements each hav- 5 ing a transverse cutting edge and a slot therein between the ends of said cutting edge, an anvil for suppOrting an elongated strip of said sleeving material, said holder being reciprocab-le toward said anvil so that said type flattens said sleeving as it moves into close juxtaposition to said anvil, said cutting elements cutting said s-leeving but said slot leaving two small connecting links in the sleeving as the latter is flattened and cut by said movement of said holder to thereby produce partially severed insulating sleeve markers of a continuous length which can be readily pulled apart.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 110,864 1/1871 Norton 10130 124,925 3/ 1872 White 101-30 929,902 8/1909 Palmer 10130 1,113,544 10/1914 Cook 101-30 X 1,857,123 5/1932 Babel 10190 1,937,195 11/19-33 Freeman 101'27 2,114,948 4/1938 Wehner et al 101-40O X 2,383,646 8/1945 Hammett 101-3O 2,725,817 12/1955 Kingsley 10141 2,929,136 3/1960 Andren 29-417 2,973,706 3/1961 Kingsley 1O111 3,031,951 5/ 1962 Campbell 1014 WILLIAM B. PENN, Primary Examiner. 

